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AMERICAN  BUREAU  OF  INDUSTRIAL  RESEARCH 


LEAFLET  NO.  3 


Labor  Leaders  and  Labor  Literature 


JOHN  B.  ANDREWS 

University  of  Wisconsin 


MADISON,  WISCONSIN 


HISTORICAL  LIBRARY  BUILDING  AT  MADISON,  WIS. 


Housing  nearly  half  a million  volumes.  The  collection  of  newspaper  files  (about  15,000  bound 
slumes)  in  importance  ranks  second  only  to  that  of  the  Library  of  Congress  at  Washington.  In 
^ al  for  the  study  of  the  Labor  Movement  in  America  it  is  the  strongest  library  m the  country. 


-D*.o^a  V'd/^JU.w  e,  w 


Labor  Leaders  and  Labor  Literature 


vm 

* Y\b 


“I  saved  labor  papers  for  many  years,  but  in  one  way  or  another  my  col- 
lection has  been  destroyed, 7 ’ is  a common  remark  of  leaders  in  the  Labor 
Movement.  “When  we  moved  that  last  time,”  or,  “At  house-cleaning  time,” 
or,  “When  our  house  burned,”  are  expressions  that  indicate  the  occasions 
for  the  loss  of  much  valuable  material  needed  by  the  student  and  historian. 

But  here  and  there  throughout  the  country  one  may  still  find  old  “war- 
horses”  in  the  Labor  Movement  who  will  bring  forth  records  of  the  great  Eight- 
Hour  movement  of  forty  years  ago,  and  show  with  undying  enthusiasm  the 
contemporaneous  accounts  of  scores  of  co-operative  societies  “doing  business 
on  the  Rochdale  plan.”  To  these  men,  the  mention  of  such  labor  papers  as 
Fincher’s  Trades  Review  (Phila.,  ?63-’66);  the  Voice  (Boston,  ’64-’67);  and 
the  Workingman’s  Advocate  (Chicago,  ’64-?76),  brings  a glow  of  honest  pride 
and  a train  of  glorious  reminiscences.  Some  still  live  who  hark  back  to  the 


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time  when  William  Weitling  was  publishing  Die  Republik  der  Arbeiter  (New 
York,  1850- ’55);  and  some  recall  those  Periodical  Letters  that  Josiah  Warren 
addressed  “To  the  Men  and  Women  of  Labor  and  Sorrow.”  It  is  a genu- 
ine pleasure  to  meet  these  men.  It  is  worth  while  to  catch  some  of  their 
enthusiasm.  Many  of  them  entered  the  Labor  Movement  along  with  Horace 
Greeley  and  Albert  Brisbane, — and  Hawthorne’s  “Blithedale  Romance  ” re- 
minds not  a few  of  the  humanitarian  awakening  which  roused  the  great 
minds  and  hearts  of  the  period  of  fifty  and  sixty  years  ago. 

To  one  who  has  interviewed  scores  of  these  men  and  thereby  caught  an 
intimate  glimpse  of  their  early  strife  days,  the  thought  of  such  real  pioneers 
as  Seth  Luther,  Eli  Moore,  and  “ Fanny ” Wright  of  the  almost  forgotten 
labor  struggle  of  the  thirties,  brings  a feeling  of  profound  regret  that  our 
permanent  records  are  so  few.  Who  would  guess  from  the  written  history 
of  that  time,  that  more  than  sixty  papers  “devoted  to  the  cause  of  the  work- 
ing man”  were  published  in  this  country  during  the  decade  1827- ’37?  By 


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some  happy  chance  a few  of  these  papers  have  lain  buried  away  in  obscure 
corners  for  three-quarters  of  a century,  and  anyone  with  half  a soul,  who 
turns  their  yellowed  pages  and  reads  their  story,  must  feel  somewhat  like 
one  who  stands  before  a monument  of  some  past  civilization,  as  he  realizes 
that 

“Even  a rag*  like  this 

Survives  him,  his  tomb, 

And  all  that’s  his.” 

Passing*  down  through  this  pioneer  period,  with  its  ten-hour  movement 
and  National  Industrial  Congresses,— on  through  the  similar  movements  of 
the  middle  of  the  century, — and  the  National  Labor  Union  history  just  after 
the  Civil  War,  with  its  leaders  like  Wm.  H.  Sylvis,  Ira  Steward,  and  “Dick” 
Trevellick, — one  finds  the  records  (if  one  finds  them  at  all)  very  difficult  to  ob- 
tain. Nearly  every  city,  and  almost  every  trade  organization  of  national 


5 


scope  had  its  labor  paper.  Convention  proceedings  were  published  in  pamphlet 
form,  constitutions  and  by-laws  ran  through  several  editions,  and  yet,  except 
for  a few  scattering  copies,  where  are  they? 

Anyone  who  has  tried  must  know  how  difficult  it  is  to  collect  complete 
hies  of  labor  papers  published  even  within  the  past  ten  years.  It  means 
days  and  nights  of  fruitless  searching — disappointments  only  here  and  there 
brightened  by  real  “ finds ” — but  it  also  means  meeting  with  men  in  every 
city  who  struggle  hopefully  on  in  spite  of  obstacles,  men  who  have  that 
“ vision ” without  which  “we  perish. ” Though  finally  weakened  in  body, 
they  do  not  wither  at  the  top. 

To  meet  on  sympathetic  ground  men  like  George  E.  McNeill,  Edward  H. 
Rogers  and  Frank  K.  Foster;  to  talk  for  an  hour  with  “Joe”  Buchanan, 
the  mysterious  Victor  Drury,  F.  A.  Sorge,  Lucien  Sanial,  John  Jarrett,  A. 
Strasser,  and  Benjamin  R.  Tucker;  to  rummage  through  barrels  and  boxes 
of  half-forgotten  lore  with  .Thomas  Phillips,  Frederick  Turner,  “Joe”  La- 


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badie,  Yoltairine  de  Claire,  and  “Pete”  McGuire — has  been  no  small  privilege. 
The  mere  mention  of  these  few  from  a long  list  of  names  will  call  up  glad 
and  sad  memories  in  the  minds  of  thousands  who  can  say 

“I  have  eaten  your  bread  and  salt, 

I have  drunk  your  water  and  wine, 

The  deaths  ye  died  I have  watched  beside, 

And  the  lives  that  ye  led  were  mine.” 

It's  a great  story,  and  some  time  when  it  is  rightly  told  it  will  mean 
much  to  future  generations  of  men.  Along  these  lines  of  struggle,  of  self- 
sacrifice  for  an  ideal  that  beckons  ever  onward  toward  a bigger  and  cleaner 
and  more  generous  humanity,  have  been  fought  the  great  battles  in  American 
history. 

If  the  signs  of  the  times  indicate  anything  to  the  man  who  walks  among 


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men,  it  is  that  a still  greater  struggle  is  before  us.  For  the  good  of  our  own 
people,  for  the  cause  of  civilization,  every  lamp  of  experience  should  be  made 
to  throw  its  light  upon  the  causes  and  conditions  of  our  present  industrial 
order. 

The  field  of  Labor  opens  up  a splendid  view  of  this  work.  About  twenty 
years  ago  Professor  Ely  published  a small  volume  on  the  “Labor  Movement 
in  America.”  It  was  a mere  sketch,  but  it  served  to  point  out  the  possibili- 
ties for  a more  intensive  study.  In  recent  years  a number  of  people  have 
become  interested  in  such  a plan  and  they  have  organized  the  American 
Bureau  of  Industrial  Research,  to  carry  on  the  work.  This  is  made  possible 
through  the  private  subscriptions  of  interested  men  and  women  throughout 
the  country. 

The  work  has  already  made  substantial  progress.  Into  a central  fireproof 
building  have  been  gathered  records  which  reflect  great  industrial  move- 
ments hardly  mentioned  by  American  historians,  and  yet  full  of  significance 


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in  their  relation  to  the  methods  of  social  control.  Hundreds  of  papers  (in- 
cluding those  mentioned  above)  and  thousands  of  pamphlets,  circulars  and 
letters,  reflecting  the  movements  of  the  people  in  their  efforts  to  maintain 
their  sovereignty,  here  form  a great  Library  of  Labor.  The  best  that  all 
other  libraries  of  the  country  could  offer  on  this  subject  has  been  transcribed 
and  brought  together  to  swell  the  collection  of  original  material.  The  Quar- 
terly Journal  of  Economics,  February,  1907,  contains  an  article  “ Labor 
Organization  and  Labor  Politics,  1827-  ’37,  ” prepared  by  John  R.  Commons, 
one  of  the  directors  of  the  Bureau  of  Industrial  Research.  This  is  but  a 
hint  of  the  exhaustive  research  already  made  by  the  Bureau.  Plans  provide 
for  reprints,  in  several  volumes,  of  the  rarest  and  most  valuable  documents. 
These  will  be  sold  to  the  libraries  of  the  country  at  cost  of  printing  alone. 
Then,  too,  there  will  be  a “History  of  Industrial  Democracy  in  America,” 
written  in  bright,  readable  style,  and  handled  by  one  of  the  best  known  pub- 
lishers. 


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A large  amount  of  editing  has  already  been  done  for  this  purpose,  but 
many  important  records  are  still  wanting.  Several  labor  leaders,  upon  learn- 
ing of  the  earnest  efforts  of  the  Bureau,  have  given  their  entire  collections 
to  further  its  purposes.  Co-operation  and  interest  of  this  kind  is  encouraging, 
and  the  primary  work  involved  in  collecting,  classifying  and  cataloging  will 
be  appreciated  by  generations  yet  unborn.  All  records  are  carefully  bound 
and  placed  in  the  permanent  collection  in  this  fireproof  building,  where  they 
may  be  used  freely  by  anyone  at  any  time.  A book-plate,  with  the  name 
of  the  contributor,  is  provided  for  insertion  in  every  volume  received.  This 
preserves  the  identity  of  new  acquisitions,  and  furnishes  a permanent  recog- 
nition of  the  interest  and  co-operation  of  the  contributor.  Anyone  having 
copies  of  papers,  convention  proceedings,  constitutions  and  letters  is  urged 
to  communicate  with  the  American  Bureau  of  Industrial  Research,  University 
of  Wisconsin,  Madison,  Wisconsin. 


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UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS-URBANA 


3 0112  032530500 


